Nice escape ... The pairing of Lena Dunham and Patrick Wilson was a highlight.

As the second series of Girls draws to a close it is time to look back on the stand out moments of Hannah, Marnie, Jessa, Shoshanna and the rest of the motley crew.

1. Friendly spooning

The show would later be criticised for blurring the boundaries between television and porn but in the series opener it was nice to see an intimate moment in bed without an ounce of sex in it. Well, if you can excuse Elijah's wake-up call.

2. Perfect strangers

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The self-contained episode One Man's Trash where we saw Hannah escape into the arms of Patrick Wilson was a joy to watch. Not only because it turned the old television cliche of a beautiful woman sleeping with a less attractive man on its head but because it wonderfully portrayed the emotional connection that can happen between two strangers. This was my favourite episode and ranks as a highlight of the season.

3. Shoshanna says

In a series that is so eminently quotable I find it's Shoshanna's dialogue that I enjoy the most. How can you not love the girl who says "I may be deflowered but I am not devalued".

Her response to Jessa's disappearance is classic Shosh: "Like you know, where is she, what is she wearing, is it linen, what language is she speaking, is she in a tropical climate, ohmygod is she cold?"

That she can sound so vacuous while being one of the most solid characters on the show is, frankly, "amaze".

In many ways Ray and Adam seem very alike, almost too alike to be part of the same small cast. Physically they both are tall, dark and on the geeky side, and as characters both play slightly older, jaded men who are highly intelligent yet socially awkward. When the two were brought together, on the guise of returning a dog, their similarities were highlighted - Ray even said as much to Adam - but the genius of this episode was how it brought their distinct characters into sharper focus. Once again Girls forced us to look beyond the physical.

5. Be my guest

Rita Wilson, Chris O'Dowd, and of course Patrick Wilson, were all highlights. Rita Wilson was en pointe as Marnie's mother and who knew that O'Dowd, who plays Jessa's husband, had such darkness in him? A shout out too for Australia's Ben Mendelsohn who turned up as Jessa's eccentric father.

6. That scene

From One Man's Trash to On All Fours, oh how far we have fallen. I won't go so far as saying it was a favourite moment of the series but Adam's porn-style downfall was a defining one. Adam has had many sex scenes on the show - to varying degrees of cover-your-eyes awfulness - but I don't think anyone will be able to look back on series two and not remember this particular moment. The enactment of Adam's nightmare porn fantasy, including the controversial money shot, was hard to watch, not just for its graphic nature but also for the devastation felt by both characters in its aftermath. It also inspired discussions around the issue of 'grey rape'.

7. The power of Shoshanna

While Jessa, Marnie and Hannah were derailed this season, Shoshanna was busy playing catch up. What she lacked in sexual experience she more than made up for in emotional maturity. When Ray moved in without discussing it with her she rightly called him out and later recognised that she wasn't at the right time of life to handle his particular brand of negativity.

It takes a special character to come across as the bigger person in the relationship when part of their break-up speech includes "sometimes I love you the way I feel sorry for a monkey".

And let's not forget that in the series opener we saw her burning incense and asking the universe "to present me with a path to ruin Ray's life". I think we can call that mission accomplished.

8. Jessa

Unfortunately there wasn't a lot of her character this season but she did give us this deliciously evil smile before she took off to deal with her demons away from her friends. And we learned never to trust your friend when she says no one is watching you pee in public.

9. Questionable fashion

Dunham admits that Hannah's clothing is meant to be ill-fitting so in some ways it's not really fair to call out her character's style choices, especially when she so frequently goes without. That said, it is pretty hard to go past the yellow mesh top she wore on her bender with Elijah. That one unfortunately is burnt on my brain.

Marnie's downhill slide was nicely expressed in her clothing choices. The futuristic dress she wore to Booth Jonathan's party highlighted her level of desperation (and to think she tried to hide Hannah's coat!) and later her messy pigtails and jeans gave us the sense that Marnie felt well and truly beaten by life.

Not one to let the team down, Shoshanna pushed the boundaries of taste with her hairstyles - the donut was a definite highlight.

10. Surprises

Jessa's marriage in season one came as a surprise and season two didn't let us down on this front. There were no surprise weddings this time around but who would've guessed that Marnie was harbouring a burning desire to be a singer, that Shoshanna had it in her to hook up with the doorman or that Hannah not only had OCD but would be compelled to burst her own ear drum? Perhaps the biggest surprise of all was the rom-com ending, did anyone see that coming?

The series proved as challenging and unexpected as ever and seemed to provide a talking point every week, which perhaps is exactly why we continue to love it. Here is to more of it in series three!

What were the stand out moments for you? Tell us below.

10 comments so far

Saw the episode last night when Jessa and Hannah visited Jessa's father and the quote of the episode was 'Well first of all that wasn't sex, you 'c*&m in my thigh crease'!!!!! Hilarious

Commenter

Bea

Location

Sydney

Date and time

March 19, 2013, 2:43PM

I was dying after I saw the episode when Hannah has a UTI and she's squatting on the side of the train tracks squealing in pain. I could relate to the pain and wanting to scream! Very real, very relatable and very funny.

Commenter

L

Location

Sydney

Date and time

March 19, 2013, 4:41PM

The most moving episode for me was when Hannah and Jessa went to visit Jessa's father. The dynamic of the fractured father/daughter relationship felt very organic and gave us insight into why Jessa is so fickle and flighty. Also loved the Patrick Wilson episode and how it seemed to take us out of the drama and provide a sort of interlude that, I guess, we all sometimes take in life, allowing someone else to interrupt your life for a moment.Having said that, I felt the last couple of episodes let the series down. Not such a fan of Hannah's 'OCD' reveal. She's become almost unbearable to watch now. And I didn't like the last episode's 'rom com' ending. Seemed too cheesy for such an edgy show. Will still be watching come Season 3 though. Lena Dunham is kind of a genius.

Commenter

oscarwatcher

Location

Date and time

March 19, 2013, 5:18PM

Shosh stole the season, especially towards the end, when she questioned her relationship and considered her budding sexuality. I'm actually glad that Jessa disappeared as she was starting to annoy me.

THAT scene was actually one of the best of the entire two seasons, showing that definite grey area which I, and many women, have experienced where you feel uncomfortable and are not enjoying what is happening but are trying to in some weird way, and when it's over you have the 20/20 hindsight view, which leaves you feeling used and abused, even though you were party to it.

And the final scene was unexpected and simply lovely.

I introduced this show to Ms Nearly 17 who has thanked me a lot for it. I think all girls and women should watch it.

Commenter

grooviechickie

Location

Date and time

March 19, 2013, 5:50PM

A really mixed season. Some episodes (eg, the Patrick Wilson episode, the episode where Marnie sang Kanye West) were astonishingly good. Others were average and some were...well, frankly poor (eg, the finale). That said, I'd much rather these ups and downs than something bland and mediocre. If nothing else, Lena Dunham has proved she is an excellent writer and a pretty good director. I look forward to her next attempt at a feature film.

Commenter

janeygotagun

Location

Date and time

March 19, 2013, 8:26PM

I loved it all. The bender episode was hilarious, I felt frustrated and pained with Hannah's OCD and who doesn't adore Shosh. So glad she's moved on. Bring on season 3!

Commenter

Girlygirl

Date and time

March 19, 2013, 9:20PM

You say in relation to a casual sexual engagement: "it wonderfully portrayed the emotional connection that can happen between two strangers. This was my favourite episode and ranks as a highlight of the season."Whatever that wonderful connection might be, it is still casual sex and by your definition, casual sex between a married woman and a stranger would be even more wonderful since it would involve a breach of trust, as, for example in Anna Karenina.I do not agree with anything you say in regard to this show. Any show that encourages or condones any human vice should not be praised but condemned.

Commenter

Ovid

Location

Brisbane

Date and time

March 20, 2013, 8:25AM

Wow. Then don't watch Dexter.

Commenter

grooviechickie

Location

Date and time

March 20, 2013, 10:06AM

"Any show that encourages or condones any human vice should not be praised but condemned."

That is exactly why I love this show. It shows human vices and real life, and is a breath of fresh air from the mundane cr@p you normally see. It obviously isn't your real life Ovid but there are many other boring happy family TV shows you can watch.

My stand out episode of the season was the clubbing one, and the one with Ben Mendelsohn. I still haven't seen the last two episodes yet.

Commenter

jen

Location

Date and time

March 20, 2013, 12:44PM

Loved the whole season. A lot deeper than the first season, with lots of character development. I loved episode 3, when Hannah and Elijah went clubbing. It was a bit more uplifting than the rest of the season (not a complaint) and who could forget Hannah's mesh top with no bra underneath? Loved it. Also loved the stand-alone episode with Patrick Wilson and when Hannah and Jessa visit Jessa's father - played brilliantly by Ben Mendelsohn.